This year, with the pandemic, has been particularly hard for those who struggle for their sobriety day by day.

Here is a challenge: use these words, “for if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live,” (Romans 8:13) to speak about addiction. I say this cautiously: first, because the passage speaks in a very elegant way about the Holy Spirit and most congregations need to hear that message. Second, because none of us want to repeat the judgmental, temperance, language of our grandparent’s church. Third, because only a few in the church will be ready to hear the message and act upon it.

That being said, note a few advantages to this passage as a teachable moment in the discussion about drugs and other addictive agents in our society.